Macon Motor Vehicle Accident Law Blog

On behalf of The Law Office of George O. Haskell, IV on Sunday, January 6, 2019.

Today’s commercial truck drivers face long hours, often logging as many as 70 hours over an eight-day stretch. The difficult, solitary nature of the profession is leading some to turn to alcohol or drugs. Sometimes, semitruck drivers abuse substances simply because they are bored and tired of spending so much time alone, while in other instances, they do so in an attempt to stay awake longer and get more miles under their belts.

Regardless of their reasoning for using alcohol or drugs, the American Addiction Centers report that abuse of both can have catastrophic effects. Given how pronounced the dangers of drinking and driving, or using drugs and driving, are for the average motorist, you can imagine that they typically magnify when the people abusing drugs and alcohol are also sitting at the controls of massive semitrucks. So, just how pervasive is the substance-abusing trucker problem?

On behalf of The Law Office of George O. Haskell, IV on Friday, November 16, 2018.

When driving your children to school, extracurricular activities and anywhere else in the Macon area, it is essential for you and all other drivers to stay attentive to the roads and vehicles around you. Many people take their vehicles for granted and assume their kids are going to be safe when car accidents occur.

Unfortunately, the sad reality is kids and babies are extremely vulnerable in motor vehicle collisions. Car accidents are not easy to prevent, and the injuries children sustain often carry long-term consequences. Here are some pointers to keep in mind about child safety and motor vehicles.

On behalf of The Law Office of George O. Haskell, IV posted in Accidents on Wednesday, October 24, 2018.

A Georgia lawmaker has proposed banning all drivers from talking on handheld phones, but this may not address the larger issue of cognitive distraction.

In recent years, distracted driving has become a serious public safety threat. Distraction.gov reports that distraction-related crashes resulted in about 421,000 injuries and 3,328 fatalities in 2012 alone. Cellphones are a common cause of driver distraction, as many people in Macon know. For this reason, texting while driving is illegal in Georgia, and novice and bus drivers cannot use handheld phones. Still, state law does not address handheld phone use among other drivers.

On behalf of The Law Office of George O. Haskell, IV posted in motorcycle accidents on Wednesday, October 24, 2018.

Many motorcyclists in Macon, Georgia, understand that riding carries a significant risk of accidents and serious injuries. At the same time, though, many riders believe their own experience and vigilance will be enough to help them avoid motorcycle accidents. Unfortunately, several recent studies have indicated that it is common for other drivers to be at fault in motorcycle accidents.

On behalf of The Law Office of George O. Haskell, IV on Thursday, September 20, 2018.

Most drivers throughout Georgia have adjusted to seeing children walking to and from school by now. However, with the weather rapidly beginning to change, your children may be more at risk of pedestrian accidents in the winter months than they were when school began in September.

An accident that occurred on September 6 in Clayton County shows how suddenly and unexpectedly a child can be hit by a car. WSBTV News reported that a 13-year-old girl was walking in the afternoon when a vehicle struck her, resulting in critical injuries. It was unknown whether she was walking home from school, but as you are aware, the time of the accident would coincide with many children's after-school schedules.

On behalf of The Law Office of George O. Haskell, IV posted in motorcycle accidents on Friday, August 17, 2018.

It's estimated that motorcyclists have fatality rates that are 28 times that of other motorists when factoring in the miles driven. It's a given that riding a two-wheeled cycle exposes riders to greater risks than other, more substantial forms of transportation.

Some risks are out of the control of motorcyclists. Distracted motorists treat driving as a secondary task while they east, slurp drinks, apply makeup or tussle with the kids riding in the back seat.

Large semitrucks emblazoned with company logos are like ubiquitous, rolling billboards on the highways. But these advertisements on wheels also serve a legal purpose and can affect the terms of any settlement for damages stemming from an accident with the at-fault truckers.

Here's how logo liability could impact you or a loved one following a collision.

On behalf of The Law Office of George O. Haskell, IV on Wednesday, August 1, 2018.

Pursuing an insurance claim after a motor vehicle accident seems as if it should be straightforward. You seek medical care following the incident to prove that the crash caused your bodily injuries. The insurance company then compensates you for medical bills, follow-up care and any long-term changes to your health and lifestyle.

Of course, that is a lot for the insurance provider to pay for every time a client gets into an accident, so insurers will do whatever they can do get out of paying the full amount. One of these ways is to examine your medical records to disprove that the accident resulted in the injury, or at least to the severity you claim.

On behalf of The Law Office of George O. Haskell, IV posted in motorcycle accidents on Friday, July 27, 2018.

Nearly all riders know that wearing a helmet is the number one thing motorcyclists can do to save their own lives. Also, here in Georgia, it's mandatory to wear a helmet when riding a motorcycle.

But what other gear should riders wear to protect themselves from injuries due to motorcycle collisions? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) state that two areas of the body most commonly injured in motorcycle accidents are the riders' legs and feet. The two combined make up 30 percent of the nonlethal injuries to bikers.

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